A novel new approach to underwriting the costs of next generation high speed Internet - fiber to the home while addressing the challenges of reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions and providing new revenue model for service providers.

Executive Summary

One of the significant challenges facing network operators today is the high capital cost of deploying next generation broadband network to individual homes or schools. Fiber to the home only makes economic sense for a relatively small percentage of homes or schools. One solution is a novel new approach under development in several jurisdictions around the world is to bundle the cost of next generation broadband Internet with the deployment of solar panels on the owners roof or through the sale of renewable energy to the homeowner. Rather than charging customers directly for the costs of deployment of thehigh speed broadband network theses costs instead areamortized over several years as a small discount on the customer’s Feed in Tariff (FIT) or renewable energy bill. There are many companies such as Solar City that will fund the entire capital cost of deploying solar panels on the roofs of homes or schools, who in turn make their money from the long term sale of the power from the panels to the electrical grid. In addition there are no Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) and Green Bond Funds that will underwrite the cost of larger installations.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Googles next steps after Kansas City

[The hubbub and buzz around Google’s Kansas City fiver to the home
(FTTH) project has died down as Google over the next year focuses on
building out its network.

As far as I know, Google has yet to announce any follow on plans to
Kansas City. Which begs the question as to what it plans to do next.
Some theorize that Google will not undertake any more fiber deployments
and instead use Kansas City as showcase to demonstrate to policy makers
that building out fiber to the home is not as expensive as the telccos
and cabelcos claim, and that there is no need for usage based billing
(UBB) or data caps.

I suspect that Google has also learned some painful lessons.
Deploying FFTH networks is a grunt business. There is no glamour or
pizzazz in stringing fiber and you definitely don’t need a degree from
Stanford to build and operate a FTTh network. It is very capital
expensive with long paybacks. It is also painfully slow as anything to
do with city owned infrastructure takes twice as long as three times
your worst estimate to complete. It is a business that is diametrically
opposite to the instant billion businesses and atmospheric valuations
of Silicon Valley.

It would be shame if Google did not expand beyond Kansas City. But
it is clearly not a undertaking suited to their business culture.

I hope that Google is exploring other alternatives such as a
“franchise model” for their FTTh networks. With a franchise model
Google’s brand name and technology would be a major asset to any budding
FTTH project. A franchise arrangement would also help many smaller
community FTTH projects get financing. For example in Europe the
European Investment Bank is financing a number of FTTH projects with
Reggefiber in the Netherlands.

Google has undertaken franchise models and underwriting costs of
infrastructure in some of its other business ventures. For example
Google has invested $75 million with Clean Power Finance which will help
homeowners install solar panels funded by Google, generating
solar-generated electricity for a monthly fee. Like FTTH the upfront
cost is the largest obstacle to installing residential solar panels.
Google, provides the capital funding while the maintenance and upkeep
responsibility of the solar panels stays with Clean Power Finance and
its local franchise installer. The homeowners, who are essentially
giving roof space in exchange for a chance to buy solar-generated
electricity, will pay a monthly fee. Google's return on investment comes
via the electricity that is generated by the solar panels and sold to
customers.

Google staff have also proposed a similar business model for FTTH
called “Homes with Tails” where the last mile is owned by the homeowner,
but where the capital cost is underwritten by the FTTH developer paid
for by fees for Internet service. It would seem obvious to bring these
two ideas together in one product offering – solar panels plus FTTH, as
part of one product offering.

Google clearly has the expertise and brand recognition to a major
FFTH franchiser. And I suspect that in addition to many community
deployments, the RBOCs might be a potential target franchisee. The
RBOCs have pretty well stopped all their FTTH deployments and yet are
still losing out to the cablecos in terms of broadband adoption. They
desperately need a new business model. But whether they would swallow
their pride and hubris and embrace a new business model with their arch
enemy Google is another matter. – BSA]

5 comments:

QBAY RESIDENCES @ TAMPINES is another exciting development which will set to capture your hearts at the fringe of Bedok Reservoir Park and with a unblock view of the Tampines Quarry.The site is well connected to major arterial roads and expressways such as Tampines Expressway and the Pan Island Expressway. The new Bartley Viaduct provide direct access to Bartley Road, Braddell and Lornie Road. The Tampines MRT station, bus interchange, and a future Downtown Line 3, Tampines West MRT Station located nearby, which provides convenient access to all parts of the island.Well-established malls such as Tampines One, Tampines Mall and Century Square, located within the Tampines Regional Centre provide diverse and convenient shopping, dining and entertainment options. Favourite household names like Courts Megastore, Giant Hypermarket and IKEA Tampines are also nearby.Residents can engage in outdoor recreational activities such as kayaking, wakeboarding or enjoy a leisure stroll at the adjacent Bedok Reservoir Park. Tampines Sports Complex and Tampines West Community Club are also located about 10–minutes’ drive away.QBAY RESIDENCES is an ideal home for families with school-going children. The development is near educational institutions such as Temasek Polytechnic, St. Hilda’s Primary and Secondary School, Red Swastika, Yu Neng Primary School, SOKA Kindergarten and the upcoming United World College of South East Asia.qbay residencesqbay residencesqbay residences

Nice Info! Solar modules are extremely reliable. There are no moving parts so you don't have to worry about replacing anything. In fact, many folks generate power for 1000s of hours with little or no maintenance.

I like these website and loce to see it Over the years this is one Web Design South Florida professional who has evolved immensely and it is helping many in all possible ways. The new as well as all important services of website designers are truly worth a hire and they will help to take the business to a different new level, Web Developers South Florida are worth a hire.

About Me

Bill St. Arnaud is a R&E Network and Green IT consultant who works with clients on a variety of subjects such as the next generation research and education and Internet networks. He also works with clients to develop practical solutions to reduce GHG emissions such as free broadband and dynamiccharging of eVehicles (See http://green-broadband.blogspot.com/) . View my complete profile